nelson

Messerist work is slow and jobs like that don`t come easy you know, so I`ll take it! I hope you don`t mind my asking: are you a blacksmith or a comedian? No offense ok, just curious , a good sense of humor is great at times too. Can`t all be forge, forge`, forge right. Well, I think I`d better quit before I lose my new job. LOL.nelson.

Yes Steve you`re right, don`t use any sharp object to scrape bee`s stings off. Hey this should take care of the disclaim issue in case. Thanks! Nelson.

Charlotte, Thanks for introducing Euler`s formula. Very interesting, but I will take your advice, because what I`m building is a hut, where the roof will roughly weigh about 160 thousand # over the columns, and that`s no weight to play with. Thank you.nelson.

Hi Ross, Yes man some days things just don`t go easy huh! Anyway, I`ve seen people talk about killer bees as on that famous movie that came out right after the outbreak of killer bees scaping from a lab in Brazil in the 80`s. Actually the bees that scape from the lab where specimens native to Africa, where these insects are exposed to harsh enviromental conditions, and much pressure coming from predators including man, that love their honney. By the way, killer bees are surprisingly heavier producers than the european bee raised in hives for commercial honney production. That`s an important trait that the Brazilian lab was trying to breed into our tame honey bee. As the African bee traveled all its way from Brazil to North America, it bred with the European bee and other species over and over on it`s trip , and the further up it went the less dominant it`s wild and agressive trait became. So the end result was probably a whole array of hibrids where the so called "killer bee" trait was diluted. These bred bees though, should be more agressive, better producers, but less like to stay in beehives, and so are more prone to swarm and fly away free from man`s made hives. As I live relatively near the Brazilian border, there`s plenty wild bees, and sure they`re agressive if you mess with them. Interesting things to remember: Be careful if you are allergic! They don`t like chemical odors, colors like red,brown, black, and are most tolerant to yellow and white, most predators have dark brownish, redish or black tones right? If you squash one or if one stings you, the sting will detach and release an alarm hormone, that you can bet any other bee nearby will respond to attacking anything moving, thus generating a chain reaction that some may be unlikely to escape. Windy, cold weather get`s them agressive too. And here`s one remedie till you get to the Doc, for those who get stung by bees, wasps, and some other insects even scorpions: pee on your hand and rub it quick on stung part. The alkaloid in the poison seems to be neutralized by urine. No joke, it works.Well the first time I heard that sure had to laugh, but getting chased and stung on my head an back by at least 30 sweeties, reminded me it was a good oportunity to test the remedie. Remember, if you try pulling a bee sting with your fingers, you`ll simply be injecting the syringe looking sack attached, so scrape it off with a blade or something that won`t worsen matters. Sorry guys for bla, bla,bla, just thought I`d take a stand in favor of those amazing insects. nelson.

Steve, almost forgot I had checked your site and you make some beautiful looking knives. Damascus yields outstanding patterns. Definetely would like to give it a try someday, and wonder if the same technique could be employed using thicker stock like 1/2" thick plate. I`d guess it`s possible, just a matter of scale huh. The reason I thought about such possibility is that some bigger damascus stock may be used for sculpture elements. Sorry if this sounds wacky! nelson.

It also looks a bit like a flaring tool for copper tubing...nelson

Thanks guys, glad you like it. For those curious about the finish: It is an odd mix of simple techniques. First paint mate black your whole sanded,ground or brushed piece.Let dry well for a few days and sand, or grind smoothly over surface to highlight texture. Apply marine varnish with a brush and don`t mind if the coat is thick. This`ll give a yellowish glassy finish with depressions darker of course due to black left in. Don`t use thinner with varnish as it may pull some black and give you a brownish tone instead of a gold glassy one. Let dry real well (preferably for a few days), and apply rusty tones like reddish, mustard,etc dubbing them all over, half mixing them not to get and homogeneous color, let this dry a bit so you would only need a lightly damp cloth with gasoline to wipe the color off, leaving crannies, and depression with that rusty mix. This last step will be up to your taste in regards to have much rustiness you leave, in my case I think about something between 10-15 % left, the eye meter will tell you. Don`t use thinner to wipe it off or you may slightly soften varnish coat, and even get to mix some black in. The varnish I`m using gives a shiny yellowish tone which is the key to this finish. Sounds complicated? No, it`s easy. Enjoy discovering...Nelson

Glenn and Charlotte, I understand a few basic principles of construction, but obviously not enough to even ask appropiately a question regarding my building at home. Certainly, safety issues are of paramount importance, so that`s one of the reasons I`m here asking `cause I don`t want the roof falling down on anyone. Anyway, I was able to search and find some specs on the 120x120x4mm structural square tube: Cold formed Steel Structural Square Tube ASTM A500 Grade C Recomended use as column for big axial loads, moderate momentums and large KL Static Properties: I = 397.30 cm4 S= 66.22 cm3 r= 4.70 cm Fy = 3.515 Kg/cm2 Fb = 0.69 x Fy e = 4mm r = 6mm A (section) = 18.01 cm2 Weight = 14.14 Kg/mt *QUESTION: given those specs above, what would be the max vertical load 4 sections of that tube spaced 6 ft apart from one another in a square pattern, if they are joint (welded) together at a 2.5 mt height, using another 4 pieces of the same material? Let`s assume the foundations are fine, and there`s no threat of wind, earthquake or a heavy guy leaning on them. LOL, just a big tank for water on top. Thanks so much for help. Nelson.

Hi Buffalo, Let me tell you, the final result does not show the trial and error process employed, a lot of adjusting till I decent looking scale was achieved. Your state, Wyoming, land of Buffalos, a perfect setting for a wagon wheel huh! You know, I just love all that stuff related to cowboys and indians. Wagon wheels was a concept long spinning in my mind. Finally had a chance to suggest a client making a couple for his restaurant. It was a thrill to have been given a chance to do something I longed to make, and got a little pay for it, ain`t that great .LOL. Thanks for your compliment.

After having searched on many structural steel related forums, so many formulas and terms got me more confused than anything else. All I need to know is: what`s the max vertical load a 2.5 mt long 120 x 120 x 4mm square structural tube can withstand ? Ignoring the especifications of steel, I would assume for safety reasons, the one I have on hand is the lowest resist hot processed. Any input will be appreciated. Thanks. Nelson.

Yes, it is simply beautiful, and sculptural ! Nelson.

This sculpture was made for a client who works in the rail road company

Hi Zarc, I do hope you feel a bit more confortable now after the not so nice introduction and welcome from our part. As a new guy here too, when I first started to read your thread and some of the answers, I felt compelled to speak up on behalf of a little tactfullness. Certainly, I`m pretty sure all guys mean good to you, but at times what we mean and how we say something should be in agreement; namely, if we want to make a comment to benefit someone, then let`s do it in a constructive fashion. Not to drag on the issue, but on your behalf, yes I`m sure you`ll benefit from improving your writing and/or speaking proficiency, who wouldn`t? You are young and seem to be a sincere guy who wants to get ahead in life. Don`t pay too much atention to down terms or actitutes out there, there`s plenty of that in today`s world. So the best you can do is improve yourself, and go for it. Zarc if you like blacksmithing, that`s what really matters. The pics you show speak for themselves. You have great potential man. Never mind if it`ll take you time to get your shop together. Welcome to this site. Please post whatever you make and share with us. Best wishes. Nelson.

Hi Doug, I agree with the guys above, and would only add a little detail: getting the tongue right is critical and not easy. What about taking a pic of the dragon profile, load it on your PC and take many copies, print that multiple copies sheet and draw different tongs on each one of those images. When you`re satisfied with one of them, make that tongue with thin plate that you can manage easy, or thicker if you dare. I`m sure you`ll get something interesting. The leaf looking wings look great, and if you strap them around neck by their stems so to speak, that might be another way. In all,

Hi Mark, Diversity is my opininon vital to survive during rough times, and this concept applies in many fields of life. Nature abhores sameness phenotypically speaking, but when it comes to adapting to certain environments some individuals have developed highly specialized skills. Now, these traits are forged over very long periods of times, thousands of years in many cases, a few mutate suddenly into better fit individuals. Unfortunately, as it is the case now with this global crisis, we cannot afford much time to develop new skills. Food is needed today and every day on the table, so the only way out may be creativity, which could parallel with mutating... I worked in farming for many years, and the more consistent profits came when I grew differents crops, as the high price of one would make up for the slump of others. Undoubtly, specializing has its advantages, but personally during critic times I`d rather be "a jack of all trades and a master of none" Nelson.

Thanks so much Unicorn, your info is appreciated. nelson.

Thanks so much Unicorn, your info is appreciated. nelson.

What about that! I think that must be one of the most attractive uses for an old wagon wheel, or for a new one too! I`m so in love with wagon wheels that I plan to make a couple to just lean one on the wall outside and another one against a tree trunk. Well, making a third one for a table sounds pretty good too. Thanks. Nelson, Irnsrgn

Hi Thomas, I have to confess I had to google LH to make sure the term was at least half understood. More mistakes as to language misuse probably. Anyhow, truthfully my neuronal activity was not at best to try understanding and finding out more about such deep matters. Nonetheless, I understand exactly what you mean, and can agree and disagree to some extent, but to make a long story short, in my case and I quote myself:

Unicorn thanks for book tips. I see you are using pine wood for your wheels. Do you plan to age them? I boiled my green wood to avoid warping and shrinking. After that shaped the components roughly and burn them some, and brush them to get a nice old looking grain. Some cuts, nicks, bleach, etc helped further for that aged look that goes so well with this sort of wheels. You know I made the metal tyre first, knowing I could manage to get a snug fit on my wood. Quite some work, but it worked!

Thanks Fe-Wood and Chadj. Nelson

Yes Frosty, it was quite a challenge because I had never made a real looking wagon wheel and there was little time. Probably, I did some things the hard way, but the client and I were satisfied. This wagon wheel would have never been functional! We just made sure it look good and it would be strong enough to hold together for a very long time up on the ceiling. Thanks. Nelson.

Thanks Finnr!

This one of the two twin lamps made of wood/steel for a country restaurant. The lamps were made as close as we could to resemble the old west wagon wheels that I could only see on images found on internet. nelson.

It`s difficult to disagree with any of the suggestions given by the guys above. After 25 years dedicated to studying and working in the field of agriculture I took the hard decission of changing jobs. At the present time I`m doing iron/wood/cement work and for personal, market and some other reasons, while I still work doing mostly steel work, there`s something else I see myself doing. Now, there`s a part of this steel or mixed media work that I would like to keep doing for money or not: sculpture. To me that`s where I can express myself, find total joy and freedom without considering if it`ll fit a budget, the client or some other restricting variable. Doing seleable work does pay bills, but do not seem to fill me mentally and expiritually. At times though, one may be undergoing a period not the most conducive to making a right decision. So taking time off is in my opinion the best you can do to start. Once back, be sincere to yourself regardless of the little or much equipment you may have. What would you really like to do? You got the answer, and if you are certain you can make a living doin what you like go do it! The other choice is to do what you like most as a hobbiest, and have some work to pay your bills regardless of the fact you may not like as much as your hobby. It`s a tough decission to make because it`s difficult to break habits, it`s hard to break ties... Take your time and don`t hurry into anything, relax and talk with your wife. Best luck. Nelson.